The North Mississippi Hill Country Picnic is now in the planning stages for the fourth year, following tremendous success in the previous three years. This year’s festival will be held June 26-27, 2009. Sponsorship and donations are currently being accepted at drsarad@gmail.com. The festival takes place on an 1,100 acre site in the rolling hills of Potts Camp. The two day festival runs from noon until after midnight both days. Local vendors offer typical North Mississippi cuisine including barbeque, catfish, and watermelon. Camping on site is encouraged for out-of-town visitors.

In the mid-‘90s the world discovered the power and distinctive sounds of North Mississippi blues via the recordings of R.L. Burnside, Junior Kimbrough, and Otha Turner. These elder statesmen have all since passed, but their music lives on through their contemporaries, family members, and disciples.

The festival was the brainchild of Potts Camp resident Kenny Brown who has witnessed first-hand the world-wide appeal and influence of Hill Country Blues through his long tenure with R.L. Burnside and travels with his own band. In starting the festival he wanted to provide an event in which artists would be honored at home with the same high acclaim they experienced globally.

Brown’s goals were solidified through the formation of the non-profit organization North MS Hill Country Picnic, Inc. The goal of the organization is to enhance appreciation and educate the general public about the native art form of North Mississippi Hill Country blues music through performance, preservation, and interpretation. The festival features artists with close ties to North Mississippi Hill Country blues. The 2009 festival lineup includes all of the major contemporary artists with direct ties to the three men noted above. Aside from Brown’s band, Duwayne Burnside & the Mississippi Mafia, Burnside Exploration, David Kimbrough, Juke Joint Duo (with Cedric Burnside), Kent Burnside & the New Generation, and the Rising Star Fife and Drum Band (led by Otha Turner’s granddaughter Sharde Thomas). Also featured are veteran North Mississippi bluesman who have worked closely with North Mississippi Hill Country artists including James “T Model” Ford, North MS Allstars, Robert Belfour, Jimbo Mathus, Hill Country Revue, Rev John Wilkins, Eric Deaton, Duff Dorough, Shannon McNally, Rocket 88, Blue Mother Tupelo, John Barnett, and the Zack Mack Band.

The Picnic is run by the non –profit organization North MS Hill Country Picnic, Inc., and enjoys great support and sponsorship from North Mississippi communities. Camping will be allowed Friday – Saturday nights, coolers are permitted (NO GLASS: ICE CHEST WILL BE CHECKED FOR GLASS), and vendors will sell local delicacies including barbeque and fried catfish. Sponsors to-date include Flick’s Country Restaurant, R & B Feder Charitable Foundation, Paragon Casino, Mississippi The Musical, Freeland & Freeland, One Day Signs, and Holly Springs Tourism.

Register now to jam with and have individual instruction from the North MS Hill Country Blues Legends

To register, please:
1. Click on “ticket information” and purchase a workshop ticket.
2. A registration form will then be emailed to you asking about your level of expertise, instrument, and whether you would like to be placed in a more or less advanced group.

When:July 3, 2008 from 10:00 AM till 3:00 PMWhere: Holly Springs, MississippiInstructors: Kenny Brown, DuWayne Burnside, Garry Burnside, Cedric Burnside, Kinney Kimbrough, Dave Kimbrough, Wendy GarrisonWho should attend: All levels of expertise will be made to feel welcome. Several breakout sessions will cater to more and less advanced students

]]>https://hillcountrypicnic.wordpress.com/2008/05/29/north-mississippi-hill-country-blues-workshop/feed/1hillcountrypicnic2007 Hill Country Picnic Live Album Coming Soon!https://hillcountrypicnic.wordpress.com/2008/05/07/2007-hill-country-picnic-live-album-coming-soon/
https://hillcountrypicnic.wordpress.com/2008/05/07/2007-hill-country-picnic-live-album-coming-soon/#respondWed, 07 May 2008 07:06:43 +0000http://hillcountrypicnic.wordpress.com/?p=39]]>The CD featuring live recordings from the 2007 Hill Country Picnic will be available to purchase soon. You don’t have to wait to hear it though! We’re streaming it here on this site.

Last June’s two day North Mississippi Hill Country Picnic was a resounding success, drawing over 2,000 people to a rural site in Potts Camp in Marshall County, MS. The festival demonstrated the vitality of the contemporary blues scene in North Mississippi, with attendees from 31 states and seven different countries. Potts Camp is located off of Route 78, about halfway between Memphis and Tupelo.

The festival celebrates the legacies of departed North Mississippi blues legends including Joe Callicott, Mississippi Fred McDowell, R.L. Burnside, Junior Kimbrough, and Othar Turner, and the festival will once again feature many of their children and grandchildren. These include Duwayne Burnside; the Burnside Exploration, featuring Garry Burnside; Cedric Burnside with Lightin Malcolm; David Kimbrough; the Rising Star Fife and Drum Band, led by Othar Turner’s 17-year-old granddaughter Sharde Thomas; Kent Burnside and the New Generation.

There are several new additions this year, first ON LINE TICKETS SALES – CHECK IT OUT (www.nmshillcountrypicnic.com). Another new addition to the festival for 2008 will be a one-day workshop on July 3rd providing visitors a chance to interact with Hill Country musicians. All levels of expertise will benefit from one on one workshop instruction and feel welcome. Several breakout sessions will cater to more and less advanced students. The instructors for the workshop will be: Kenny Brown, Cedric Burnside, DuWayne Burnside, Garry Burnside, Wendy Garrison, Dave Kimbrough, and Kinney Kimbrough. In conjunction with the Picnic will be the unveiling ceremony for the Marshall County Historic Blues Trail Marker honoring R.L. Burnside and Junior Kimbrough to be held on the Holly Springs Square, July 3rd. Donations to Marshall County Historic Blues Trail Marker can be made at http://www.myspace.com/hollyspringsbluestrail.

The Picnic is run by the non –profit organization North MS Hill Country Picnic, Inc., and enjoys great support and sponsorship from North Mississippi communities. Camping will be allowed Thursday – Saturday nights, coolers are permitted (NO GLASS: ICE CHEST WILL BE CHECKED FOR GLASS), and vendors will sell local delicacies including barbeque and fried catfish. Sponsors to-date include Flick’s Country Restaurant, R & B Feder Charitable Foundation, Paragon Casino, Freeland & Freeland, One Day Signs, Holly Springs Tourism, Oxford Tourism, ComCast Media, MS Arts Commission, Honest Tunes, and Living Blues.